I Am Louis XIV

   Chapter 209 Henrietta's Persuasion and the Decision of Charles II (2)

How did Charles II feel about Louis XIV? When he first met Louis, Charles II, who was only the Duke of Cornwall, did not value this young relative, after all, he was eight years older than Louis. Years old, before Charles I was imprisoned and executed, he was also being taught by his father to learn how to become a king, and Louis was only surrounded by ambitious bishops and queen mothers. Who would have thought that he would finally gather the kingship in his hands It turned out not to be Charles II, but Louis, of course, you can say that the kings of France have been working on this time, but the former Henry VIII is also the king of earth and heaven (meaning that he has the supreme kingship at the same time) and the Church), but after James I, the rights of the British king have gradually been transferred to the parliament and the princes. At this point, the subsequent kings have fought for it more than once, but we have also seen the worst results. The king's noble head fell to the dust, and from now on, no fool will think that the king is any different from himself.

Charles II's gloom was fleeting, and when he returned to London, he realized that Louis XIV, who was eight years younger than him, could see the future more clearly and farther than he did. He insisted on assisting the Duke of Cornwall, not only It is only because of their previous kinship, not the willfulness and innocence of children, but the persistence and stability of the monarchy. All, no traitor, even Cromwell, the protector of the country, can get his. Admit it, and Charles II, even if he was not crowned at that time, Louis XIV regarded him as a monarch, and this point, the monarchs of the Europa kingdoms did not seem to realize that at that time, Charles II not only wanted to Beware of these people handing themselves over to Cromwell, and worrying about their own clothing, food, shelter and transportation.

He was grateful to Louis XIV, but over time that gratitude inevitably turned into jealousy, and while he was still arguing with Parliament about how much gold he should have for the next year, Louis XIV Not only did he inherit the property of the bishop of Mazarin, but he also established a great fortune in Lorraine and Alsace; ) and those lords, when Louis XIV already had a new army stationed at Versailles, regardless of the guards, dragoons and musketeers that originally belonged to the king; he was still suffering for his henchmen. While struggling with the ministers to compete for one or two positions at the court, Louis XIV even drove directly to Flanders and seized an incomparably vast territory for France.

How could this make Charles II feel like being bitten by a poisonous snake? He couldn't refute Henrietta's ridicule. Fortunately, Henrietta just pretended to be careless. As soon as she saw Charles II's face changed, she immediately made a The attitude of a sister should be oh, kneeling in repentance, and diligent service, and finally Charles II's expression slowly calmed down: "You have become reckless," Charles II said reproachfully, But there was not much real anger in the tone: "Is it the same for you in the French court? I would like to thank Louis and Philip well, and they are so tolerant of you."

"Well, rather than being reckless, it is better to say that I have been brewing this sentence for a long time, and now I can finally say it." Henrietta said, "My brother, my king, please put it away for a while. Your anger, listen to me..."

   "I listen, Henrietta, you rapping bird, loud trumpet, or rather, a sharp dagger, your words pierced right into my heart."

   "You are the king."

   "As you say, in name only."

   "You need money, you need weapons, you need loyal soldiers and generals, and you need obedient ministers and people."

   "That's what they fear. They'll do anything to nip in the cradle of all my attempts, even if they have to put a king to death on each other. Oh, look at me, Henrietta, they've done it."

   "So we desperately need an ally."

   "Who? Louis XIV?"

   "Who else but him?"

   "William is our nephew," said Charles II. "I am his uncle."

"Louis is also our cousin," said Henrietta, who jumped from her chair and knelt beside Charles II: "The main thing is, Your Majesty, France is a mighty lion, while Holland is only a A two-headed lizard."

   "Because France is already so powerful, as King of England I cannot make him more dangerous."

   "You're right," Henrietta's lips curled slightly, "but first, you must be the king of England."

   "They have the worst ideas," said Charles II, "but I am not helpless."

"I believe that you must also have one or several trump cards," Henrietta said, "but, brother, in a poker game, if you play an ace card, it often means that the game has reached the final moment. Fall, whether you like it or not, the curtain must come to an end." She grabbed the hand of Charles II: "If you have fifty thousand people, no, even if you have ten thousand people, I don't have to worry about your safety, but, "You don't," she pointed out bluntly, "and I have seen with my own eyes the artisans forged by the craftsmen for Louis, with the words inscribed on them - 'The King's Last Argument,' my dear brother, though I am ignorant, But I also know that these words are really good words for the world.”

"So Louis asked you to tempt me," Charles II suddenly thought of something, and he smiled: "It is said that Leopold I is so embarrassed now because he once got half a million from Louis XIV. King Louis." Although neither Louis XIV nor Leopold I would hype it up, Leopold I's eccentric behavior at the Battle of Flanders had long aroused suspicion, and then they listened to Said that the Archduke of Tuscany in Florence held in his hand an instrument of great importance to both France and the Holy Roman Empire, and those shrewd guessed that Leopold I might have signed a covenant with France against Spain, Although I don't know what kind of devil Leopold I encountered to be so crazy - but they all think that the interests must be so great that Leopold I can't take care of the Habsburg royal family in Spain. .

And Charles II knew more. For example, Leopold I did try to buy Bosnia, and the "messenger" of the Bosnian governor did visit several kings, but in the end, the transaction was rejected. It turned out to be a hoax, a hoax, a hilarious and vicious joke.

   "I don't want to be the second joke," said Charles II.

   "You are my brother, how could I watch you fall into such an embarrassing situation?"

   "You are also the wife of the Duke of Orleans and the mother of the Grand Princess." Charles II shook his head.

"I'm not bringing a false promise," Henrietta said, "but a solemn entrustment, brother, you don't need to worry, Your Majesty doesn't need any signature or certificate, he asked me to tell you, if you are willing , France is not only willing to give the same return as Leopold I, he is also willing to share the Netherlands with you."

"Share Holland," repeated Charles II. "How wonderful it sounds, but the point is, Holland is not owned by anyone yet, neither I nor Louis have any rights in it, and Parliament has no right to it, even if I wanted to believe it. won't allow it."

   "But you are the king, and your brother, the Duke of York, is the Lord of the Navy." The King has the right to declare war, and the Lord of the Navy has the right to command the navy.

"This is the second reason why I would be envious of Louis XIV. The Duke of Orleans, when he left Paris, when his life and death was unknown, was elected king by proxy, but Philip refused, and my brother, if he met the same The situation, he will only take it ecstatically, no, he will grab the crown and scepter that he has longed for."

   "You mean he's not loyal to you."

"Ambition is greater than his piety and respect," said Charles II. "Besides, tell me about the third place, Henrietta, where I was jealous of Louis XIV," he said bitterly: "I have now There is no heir, no son, not even a daughter.” And he is almost forty, and the queen is also thirty years old. At this time, people’s life expectancy is not long, and a forty-year-old should have several children. Now, while Louis XIV already had a healthy dauphin and princess, Charles II was still empty-although he had fourteen illegitimate children.

At times, Charles II almost imitated Henry VIII, sending his queen to a convent, annulling the previous marriage contract, and choosing one of his lovers as queen, as long as she could give birth to an heir for him, but he also knew Impossible, Henry VIII was powerful at that time, and he opened his mouth to become a constitution. No matter at home or abroad, there were almost no people who could restrain him, and Charles II, it was not easy for him to persist until now.

   "Then is he willing to conspire with our enemy now?" Henrietta asked calmly.

   "It can only be said that he is up for sale," said Charles II.

   "Then you give a price he can't refuse."

   "What price?"

"What more could there be, what he desires most, if he wants it, brother," said Henrietta, "even to bow down to the thugs, then tell him that you want him to be your heir. "

"and then?"

   "If he will obey your orders," said Henrietta, "he may be given the title of Prince of Wales."

   "He wouldn't believe it easily."

   "You have no heir, this is your biggest bargaining chip."

   "I am afraid it will be self-defeating," said Charles II. "Those people are willing to collude with him precisely because they do not want me to sit on the throne. If I am willing to admit the Duke of York, they may take advantage of it."

   "But then you'll have an army."

   "Army?"

   "From Dunkirk, to Dover, Brother Wang, Dover to London, two hundred miles, they can come to you in less than a day."

   "They are French."

   "A king can hire soldiers from any nation as he pleases, as long as they are willing to serve him."

   "If I fail, then I'm going to follow in my father's footsteps."

"There are fifteen thousand soldiers in Dunkirk now," said Henrietta. "As soon as the British navy goes out to sea, the Dunkirk fleet will appear in the Strait of Dover at once." Get up: "Your army has taken control of the city of London while they are still panicking about the naval expedition."

   "I want to think about it, Henrietta, think about it."

"The man who brought me to your side will not put you in a dangerous position," whispered Henrietta. "My lord, when you were Duke of Cornwall, when you were rejected by almost all the kings of Europa. When you were alone, he was the only one who stood by your side resolutely. At that time, he was not even able to take charge of the government. Even so, he did everything he could. His Majesty once told me that, of course, it was out of love for relatives. , but in the end it is because you are the king of England that a king should not be deprived of his God-given responsibilities by parliament, ministers or bishops, and he has never wavered so far."

These remarks made Charles II's tangled heart a little more relaxed. It is undeniable that Louis XIV has indeed been on the road to centralization of royal power. For this reason, he not only does not allow any behavior in France to shake the king's power , and also disdain any daring traitor, such as the British Parliament, who is bent on limiting the king's power and putting his own interests above the king's behavior, which can be said to be the king's most hated behavior.

   "If we get Holland," said Charles II embarrassedly, "what about William?"

"Let me tell the truth," said Henrietta grimly: "If William could become king of the Netherlands, what could he give you? Don't forget that William Orange was in the Habsburg court. Big, Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire, and the female governor of the Netherlands all regarded him as their child, and chose a bride of prominent birth for him, and let him rule three provinces at the age of twenty-six, but he How to repay them? Rebellion! Even at the cost of bankruptcy, if you say how holy he has ideas, you probably won't believe it, after all, he is only two days away from the throne, and his child, William II, is even more so. If it weren't for the inexplicable smallpox that once imprisoned the members of the Dutch parliament, perhaps he is now the most terrible enemy of cause and effect, then how can you think that little William would be a kind nephew?"

She paused and added: "Our little William, when he was still educated and under the care of his grandmother, was called the 'Prince of Vengeance', and when he was declared an adult, he not only succeeded in getting away from those republicans He took Zeeland from his hands and became the supreme military commander of the Netherlands. If he got the Netherlands, do you think he would be willing to make peace with you and the United Kingdom? By then, let alone giving in return and assistance, I'm afraid that because he was charged with treason, like our father, you might be sent to the beheading stage by the thugs."

   (end of this chapter)